There are four main types, or flavors, of New York divorces.
Uncontested divorces, often called “no-fault divorces,” occur when the parties settle their divorce entirely out of court, with no court appearances, and then file all of their documents with the court.
Divorces by default occur when one party initiates a divorce, properly serves the initial divorce documents on the other party, and the other party fails to respond to the initial divorce papers in any way before the deadline. The first party then files all of the required divorce by default papers and is awarded a divorce on a default basis.
Divorce mediation is a useful tool to use when two parties want to keep their divorce out of court, but are stuck on one or more issues and can use the help of an impartial, trained professional who helps the parties navigate through the tougher issues and work to help the parties settle their divorce.
Contested divorces occur when the parties refuse to settle out of court. The contested divorce process usually takes the longest and is the most expensive. It includes multiple court appearances, an extensive discovery process that may include the hiring of experts such as appraisers, forensics, and others, and may include extensive motion practice.